Replication of micro/nano-scale features by micro injection molding with a bulk metallic glass mold insert

Abstract

The development of MEMS and microsystems needs a reliable mass production process to fabricate micro components with micro/nano-scale features. In our study, we used the micro injection molding process to replicate micro/nano-scale channels and ridges from a bulk metallic glass (BMG) cavity insert. High-density polyethylene was used as the molding material and the design of experiment approach was adopted to systematically and statistically investigate the relationship between machine parameters, real process conditions and replication quality. The peak cavity pressure and temperature were selected as process characteristic values to describe the real process conditions that the material experienced during the filling process. The experiments revealed that the replication of ridges, including feature edge, profile and filling height, was sensitive to the flow direction; cavity pressure and temperature both increased with holding pressure and mold temperature; replication quality can be improved by increasing cavity pressure and temperature within a certain range. The replication quality of micro/nano features is tightly related to the thermomechanical history of material experienced during the molding process. In addition, the longevity and roughness of the BMG insert were also evaluated based on the number of injection molding cycles.